Art & Art History ETDs

Publication Date

5-5-1977

Abstract

The Art of Kiftlis eg Marmae is a mixed-media, interdisciplinary work exploring the use of art history and museology as vehicles for aesthetic statements. Included in the exhibition are manuscripts and ceremonial objects from the ruins of Kiftlis eg Marmae, a Bronze-Age civilization in the Near East, discovered in 1827, by Sir Joshua Pennington. Kiftlis eg Marmae, its anthropology, mythology, language and iconography are all fictitious. The piece thus strives to present an ostensibly well researched show of antiquities supported by extensive research. A catalogue accompanies the show. The catalogue includes two articles written by pseudonyms of the artist, some reproductions of the works, and two appendices: an interview with Juan Cabrero by his pseudonym, J.M.C. Oliver, and a transliterated and interlinearly translated version of the Quafran Hymns. The first article, "Kiftlis eg Marmae: an Historical Profile," by Jean Chevier (a pseudonym) presents the political situation in the Near East in the early years of the nineteenth century. The intervention of European forces against the Egyptian invasion of Greece brought Sir Joshua Pennington, future discoverer of the Kiftlis, to the area. The article goes on to describe Pennington's expedition and ends with an over-view of the Quafran world-view as exemplified by Quafran calligraphy and mythology. The second article, "Overall Pattern and the Search for Sublime Image in the Walls of Kiftlis eg Marmae," is by Giovanni Caprieri, a pseudonym. The article presents the problems of the relation between the calligraphy found on the walls of Kiftlis and its function in the religious lines of the Quafrans. Mr. Caprieri presents the thesis that Quafran calligraphy is a kind of over-all, decentralized pattern akin to modern grid painting. The eighteenth century idea of the Sublime in art is used to throw light on the function of the scale of the walls in the Quafran religious experience. Appendix I, "Art and the Art of Art History-An Interview with Juan Cabrero," by J.M.C. Oliver (a pseudonym) presents Mr. Cabrera's ideas in relation to art history, the ethics of presenting forgeries, and the problem of time. Appendix II, "Three Quafran Hymns," includes "The Myth of Tzeuezt and Lolhenna," "The Exhortation of Boulon,” and "The Great Hymn of Tzeuezt's Transformation," all transliterated into English phonetics and with an interlinear translation.

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Arts

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

UNM Department of Art and Art History

First Committee Member (Chair)

Harry Nadler

Second Committee Member

Robert M. Ellis

Third Committee Member

Johannes Lacher

Fourth Committee Member

Howard David Rodee

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